Irish Books Down Under

Books stay with people through their lives, and evoke place,
time and company. They sit on a shelf and tell other people about who we are.
In a world where travel is easier and faster than ever before, and world-wide electronic
communication is instant and reliable, the resilience of the book as a way of
transporting the reader lives on.

The most famous Irish authors, particularly those who write
fiction for adults, are available around the world. Most of these, however, are
with UK publishing houses whose scale and international presence makes this
easy. While eBooks have a worldwide reach, the heart of the market is still in
physical books. For small Irish companies, the challenge of selling heavy,
cheap, low-margin items in a market saturated with product half the planet away
is a little bigger!

As everybody building an international presence knows, there
is no substitute for face to face meetings. Representing the Irish book
publishing sector, I was lucky to be the guest of the Publishing Association of
New Zealand (PANZ) in 2017, under the NZ government’s enlightened Te Manu Ka
Tau (Flying Friend) programme for the arts. Meeting the whole industry there,
and comparing with our own, was fascinating, and there were many learnings for
the Irish publishing sector. Informal dinners and follow-up meetings at trade
fairs have helped to cement relationships.

With my O’Brien Press hat on, of course, I was looking for
sales and licensing opportunities! Culture is the main calling-card for Ireland
worldwide, and as a small, green country with a big neighbour there is a
natural empathy in New Zealand for Irish books. Roll on to June 2019 and we are
delighted that six thousand units have hit the warehouse of our new partner Upstart
Press in Auckland, led by the hugely experienced Kevin Chapman, and are now
on sale in bookshops and school fairs throughout New Zealand.

As a publisher of books for adults and children, we can test
the market across a wide range of titles. Unlike most UK publishers, who still
print prices on the back of their books (weird but true! Look on your shelves
…), we can readily price to market in a country where GST applies to books.

So, what do we think Kiwis are going to be interested in?
Available in shops now is a children’s fiction series (Rugby Spirit by
Gerard Siggins) which combines school, rugby and a great ghost story. We also
have The O’Brien Book of Irish Fairy Tales and Legends, a beautifully
illustrated, full-colour volume of myths for all the family, and The
Whiskeys of Ireland, as the Irish drinks industry expands its footprint,
we’re betting that this will create a market for those who want more
information.

It’s a risk, and the timelines are very long, but it’s
exciting to take the leap into new markets: with another 20 titles due to hit
the New Zealand market through the rest of 2019 we are confident that Irish
books can make a splash in the land of the long white cloud. Happy reading!